Kingdom of Sarawak: Map & History

History

The Raj was founded by James Brooke, an English former soldier and adventurer who arrived at the banks of the Sarawak River and berthed his schooner there in 1839. After having served in the First Anglo-Burmese War, where he was severely wounded in battle, Brooke returned to England in 1825 to recover from his injury. Despite his attempts to return to service, he was unable to return to his station in India before his temporary leave from the service expired. Overstaying his furlough resulted in his position in the military being forfeited, but he was awarded a pension by the government for his service. He continued on from India and went to China to improve his health.

On his way to China in 1830, he saw the islands of the Asiatic Archipelago, still generally unknown to Europeans.

Government

Prior to the establishment of the Sarawak Administrative Service under Charles Brooke, there had been no formal civil administration. The civil service recruited Europeans, mainly British officers, to run district outstations where the residents became exposed to and trained in many British and European methods and culture, while retaining the customs of the indigenous people. After the acquisition of more territory, Sarawak was divided into five divisions, each headed by a Resident. A Resident's job was to establish law and order, convene courts to settle disputes, punish crimes, be accessible at all times to the natives, and "gain the confidence of the chiefs of the wilder tribes and to lead them to accept the Sarawak flag and the benefits of the Rajah's government".

Economy

Upon acquisition of his first territories in the First Division, James Brooke came into possession of a large quantity of antimony from mines around the area. At the time of his arrival, a land tenure system known as the Native Customary Rights had been practised by the indigenous communities. James Brooke's first priority was to abolish headhunting among the indigenous communities of the interior. The kingdom's authorities conducted repeated raids on Sea Dayak villages and, facing a major rebellion, ultimately forced them to practice horticulture and abandon headhunting. Land Dayaks had also been involved in headhunting but more readily abandoned the practice and became loyal followers of James Brooke.